The Golden Ball and Other Stories

I found the first seven stories in this collection pretty terrible, with unlikeable characters and plots that managed to be as pedestrian as they were improbable.

The second half of the book, though, shows the strength of Christie’s short stories— basically, when she stops writing short versions of her usual mysteries, and can really do something weird.

I’d separate the rest of the stories into two categories. First, the category I’ll call Genuinely Moving, including “Swan Song”, where an opera singer calmly gets revenge for her dead lover, “The Lamp”, where a young boy tries to befriend a ghost but instead wastes away and becomes a ghost himself, “Magnolia Blossom”, where a woman makes a sacrifice for her husband show more before being callously used by him, and “Next to a Dog”, where a young widow’s life is falling apart, and the only thing she loves is her poor old dog. They’re all very depressing, but good.

The other category I’ll call Absolutely Batshit. This includes “The Strange Case of Sir Arthur Carmichael” where a man turns into a cat (yes, really, though not in the way you’re imagining), “The Call of Wings” which is like if that one weird magical flute music chapter of The Wind in the Willows happened to a random rich businessman, and, my personal favorite, “The Hound of Death”, which I would call the most SF/F of any of Christie story I’ve read, and is totally weird and great. I want a whole book about the City of Circles. show less

I am a big fan of Agatha Christie, but this collection was very hit or miss for me, mostly miss. Not a real mystery in the bunch although a couple of decent old style thrillers. The rest were IMHO silly romances that relied on ridiculous coincidences or supernatural fantasy tales that didn’t work at all.

Two stories that I enjoyed: Swan Song—an excellent thriller and Magnolia Blossom which in a way reminded me of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House.

The Golden Ball and Other Stories is actually an anthology of some of the short stories that appeared in three previous works: The Listerdale Mystery And Eleven Other Stories, The Hound of Death and Problem at Pollensa Bay and Other Stories. The Audible edition has Poirot actor Hugh Fraser reading the first eight short stories and Christopher Lee reading the final seven (which aren’t as good except for one, “Magnolia Blossom”).

I found “The Manhood of Edward Robinson” delightful and “Magnolia Blossom” one of best short stories I have read, making me add an extra star for it alone. “The Girl on the Train” and “The Golden Ball” are fun, if a bit predictable. The rest can pass the time, but nothing more. Still, without show more the cerebral Hercules Poirot or the practical Jane Marple, Agatha Christie indulges an interest in some supernatural tales, an interesting turn in itself. show less

This was far from a stunning collection of stories, but it was interesting. I felt curiously cheated to have two stories that start with a nephew fired from his job by his uncle for laziness, even if they did head off in different directions. The mundane stories weren't bad, but they weren't brilliant, unlike much of Christie's novel-length work.

I found the supernatural material intriguing. It was clearly pre-Tolkien material, bound to the modern world, with the supernatural vaguely impinging on the British world, but not less interesting because of that. Works of a subgenre of fantasy that is just too tame to get published in today's world.

This rather miscellaneous collection of stories seems to have been assembled by the publisher after Christie's death; what the stories have in common is that they aren't traditional mysteries. Few involve murder; several involve supernatural occurrences. Those stories, I found tedious. My three favorites all involved conventional, rather weak young men driven to unusual extremes and impressing ladies with their new forcefulness. One breaks into someone else's bathing cottage and winds up with a stolen emerald; another accidentally drives away in someone else's car, also containing stolen jewels, and the third picks up a beautiful society girl and is pulled into an apparent holdup. Those three were quite entertaining, but the book as a show more whole did not earn a place on my bookshelf. show less

These are stories that a definitely written for the times. We get a man who learns how to be manly when he buys a car and hides it from his fiance. British imperialism is written throughout the book. This edition didn't tell me when the stories were written - so at times some stories seemed quite modern, while others seemed much older. Generally, the women were plucky, finding love with an appropriate Gentlemen, Men were either manly, or bookish. Its a book filled with stereotypes, most that are inappropriate for today's world.

One last thing - I didn't expect to find mysticism/magic realism in these stories. A few of them were borderline ghost stories.

The standout story for me was the "Listerdale Mystery" - where a widow with little show more money and children to take of moves into a house that seems to good to be true.

Recommended if you like the author, but I think it might be better to read one of her well known books first. show less

This is a collection of 15 short mysteries by Agatha Christie. They aren’t the typical mystery expected from Christie. A number of them have a romantic touch to them.

“The Strange Case of Sir Andrew Carmichael” is along the lines of the supernatural. “The Girl In The Train” is a mad-cap tale of boy-meets-girl on a train. “The Rajah’s Emerald” is the story of the mysterious disappearance and reappearance of a magnificent jewel. There is a little mystery and an enjoyable story in each one. Written in the 1920s and 1930s, they have the taste of the black and white movies of that era.

A selection of fun, light reads with the Christie touch.